Maryland OK's $64 Million Contract for Chimes

BALTIMORE -- The state Board of Public Works approved Wednesday a $63.8 million contract for Chimes Inc. to provide janitorial services for Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, despite objections from state Del. Barbara A. Robinson.
Robinson, a Baltimore Democrat, has drafted a bill for the 2012 legislative session that would exclude some nonprofits from the state’s Minority Business Enterprise, or MBE, program. Chimes, a nonprofit, provides employment opportunities for those with developmental disabilities.
“What I am saying is there should be an even playing field,” Robinson told the three-person Board of Public Works panel. “When you put a MBE against a nonprofit, it's not an even playing field.”